Transformation of sewer grease over foam-based catalyst into drilling green diesel
M. Hasif Auji1, G. Abdulkareem-Alsultan2,3, Y. H. Taufiq-Yap2,3, N. Asikin-Mijan1*

1Department of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 UKM Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia
2Catalysis Science and Technology Research Centre, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
3Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
*Email: nurul.asikin[at]ukm.edu.my

Abstract

Green diesel is a renewable fuel from organic waste and plant materials, offers an environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum derived fuel. Consequently, the current investigation emphasizes the innovative production of drilling fluid base-oil from fat, oil, and grease (FOG), colloquially known as sewer grease, through the hydrodeoxygenation (HDO) reaction utilizing a bimetallic modified iron foam catalyst using a series of cerium loadings with a fixed amount of nickel (NixCey/Fe-Foam) via an electrodeposition method followed by H2 annealing. Comprehensive characterization of the catalysts was conducted. Notably, the presence of cerium species enhances the number of acid sites, facilitating the elimination of oxygen functionalities. Furthermore, the catalyst displayed a distinct rosette-like morphological architecture. In the context of the catalytic HDO screening conducted at 400 oC for six hours, the Ni0.34Ce0.42/Fe-Foam (H2) catalyst, enriched with cerium vacancy species, outperformed the other catalysts, achieving a hydrocarbon yield of 86% and 74% selectivity toward diesel range base-oil. This superior performance can be attributed to weak to medium acidity sites within the catalyst, which enhance its catalytic efficacy in the HDO process rather than being related to surface area characteristics

Keywords: Cerium- base-oil- drilling fluid- foam- hydrodeoxygenation,

Topic: Renewable energy and biorefinery